Manchester City hit with transfer ban on academy players for tapping up schoolboys

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City will also be fined £300,000 (Source: Getty)

Joe Hall

Manchester City have become the second Premier League side in a month to be banned from signing academy players for tapping up two schoolboys.

City join Liverpool in being banned from signing any new players under 18 who have been registered with a Premier League or English Football League (EFL) club in the last 18 months, with the second year suspended for three years, after breaching youth development rules.

The Premier League have also imposed a £300,000 fine on City — £200,000 more than Liverpool who last month were found guilty of violating protocol in their approach of a 12-year-old academy player at Stoke City.

In a statement, the Premier League said an investigation found evidence of contact between City and "members of each academy player’s family while those academy players were still registered with their previous club."

City, who had already introduced the two schoolboys into their academies, have offered to pay compensation to each player's previous club and continue to provide education until the pair have completed their GCSE's.

The two players' conditional registration with the club have now been terminated.